That's How We're Built
by Lady Calipso
Summary: A lone soldier against an army. He knows he doesn't stand a chance, but at least he'll get to see her again. One shot. Implied Careese. Rated T for violence. Contains spoilers for seasons 3 and 5.


He stood on the roof as the laptop loaded a virus to end Samaritan. John Reese knew that he would not make it off the roof alive, but he was ok with that. He was a soldier and this was his purpose; to protect his friends and their freedom. Plus he would see her again.

He had dreams about her ever since that night she was taken from him. Again and again he relived her last two nights; the first kiss they shared to the moment she died in his arms. Each time Simmon's gun fired, he felt that he should have been the one to receive the fatal bullet. After all, she had a son to take care of and she was completely innocent. She didn't have nearly as many crimes to pay for as he did; he should have been the one to die. But her role was over. She put an end to HR, now it was his job to end Samaritan. Perhaps this was the reason she died instead of him, so he could save the world.

He smiled to himself knowing that she was at peace. She had dedicated her life to making the world a better place, it was his turn to fulfill that goal and put an end to the corrupt project that would subjugate the world more or less. He would not let the detective's sacrifice go in vain.

Finch stood on top of a roof the machine had led him too. He was devastated when he realized what Reese had done. But Reese could not allow his best friend to die, so he had taken his place. He explained to his employer that this was his purpose all along; to save lives.

 _Bang!_ He turned around to see Samaritan agents joining him on the roof. They fired some rounds at him, but he shot back, taking them out. Mr. Reese had to keep the agents away from the laptop so that they will not stop the virus. As he protected the machine, he glanced back at his friend who was limping to the exit. He smiled knowing that he'll be safe. More henchmen arrived firing more shots, some of them hitting John, but he did not give up.

* * *

 _They sat together in the car as the night around them was silent. They were on surveillance duty for their latest person of interest, but nothing major was happening so the detective and the vigilante decided to pass the time by conversing._

" _So now that you know all of my retirement plans, what has the man in the suit got planned after he hangs up the suit?" the detective asked._

" _I haven't given it much thought." answered the Man in the Suit._

" _Don't play with me, John. I just cleaned my service weapon. Now, spill."_

" _There is no after for people like us. No peace for you, no retirement for me. We don't do fairy tales. That's how we're built."_

" _You don't really believe that."_

" _Tell me something. How'd you wind up here in the first place?"_

" _I'm pretty sure you drove us here."_

" _No. Here in this car drinking cold coffee, stalking a bar owner in the middle of the night."_

" _Where else should I be?"_

" _You went to law school. How about a corner office downtown?"_

" _Thank you for proving my point. I started off on one path but I changed, because that wasn't the end game for me, John. You can change too."_

" _No one changes, Carter. You're here because this is where you were always headed. No one changes." *_

* * *

"It looks like you've changed, John." He was back on the roof. He had just taken out a wave of Samaritan operatives, but he knew more were on the way.

"Joss," Mr. Reese began, "No one-"

"Changes, that's what you told me before. But look at you. You're up here, finishing a war." She paused, "You know a good soldier follows orders, yet you disobeyed Finch and now you're here taking his place. Why?"

"It's the right thing to do."

"Yeah, that's what they all say. But I think it's more than that. You care about Finch, Shaw, and Fusco."

"I think anyone would give everything for a friend."

"Do you remember when we first met?"

"Yeah, that was when I got into a fight with those punks." He paused, "That was also around the time I met Finch."

"When I first met you, you were some homeless man in on the street. No job, no money, just someone who was hoping to drink himself to death. Then you met Finch. He gave you a job, a purpose, John."

"I was still fighting, Joss. Just like in the military."

"What I meant was, that homeless man wouldn't have cared about anything going on around him. All he cared about was getting more alcohol and that one bullet he had in his gun. You're not that homeless man anymore, John. You care for your friends. You want them to have their happy endings."

"A happy ending, must be nice."

"You can still have yours." Gunshots began to peal again. Mr. Reese fired back at the assailants, giving them everything he had. "I'll see you soon, John."

Mere minutes remained until the machine finished uploading the virus. Reese did everything he could to keep Samaritan away from the laptop. The rooftop became his last battlefield. A lone soldier against an army. He was clearly outnumbered, yet he continued fighting even though he was being bombarded with bullets. Between being shot and a missile coming to destroy the roof, one thing was for certain; he was not going to make it off this roof.

* * *

After he took out the last Samaritan agent, the Man in the Suit sat down and leaned against a pole. Blood surrounded him as it poured out of his body. There were only seconds left until the missile launched. He didn't know which would take him first. "I guess you were right, Joss. I have changed." The loss of blood began to make him feel light-headed, then he passed out.

When he regained consciousness, he was enveloped in a bright white light. He sat up and noticed that he was not in any pain nor was he bleeding nor were there any bullet holes for that matter.

"Hello, John." said a voice out of nowhere.

He looked around for the owner, then he saw her.

"Joss." He stood up and took her in.

She was very beautiful. Her chocolate hair fell around her and seemed to be a bit longer, her dark skin was without flaw. She wore her normal off-duty attire of a dark long sleeve blouse, bootcut jeans, and heels all of which brought out her eyes.

He slowly approached her still not comprehending what is happening. After life or hallucination, he did not care. He wrapped his arms around her in an embrace of which she returned. He was not going to let go, not for all of eternity.

* * *

 ***flashback taken directly from episode "Terra Incognita"**

 **So, my reader, what do you think of this piece? Feel free to let me know. Also I am open to constructive criticism. Allons-Y!**


End file.
